Scottish Executive

Agriculture

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many crofters and farmers received their 2002 Suckler Cow Premium advance payments (a) in November 2002, (b) in December 2002 and (c) up to and including 20 January 2003 and how many payments remain to be made after 20 January 2003.

Ross Finnie: We received 7,893 claims under the 2002 Suckler Cow Premium Scheme (SCPS) by the final closing date of 31 December 2002. The numbers of producers (farmers and crofters) who have been issued advance payments are: (a) in November 2002 – 1,157; (b) in December 2002 – 1,386, and (c) in January 2003 (up to and including 20 January) – 3,989. The claim validation and payment process is continuing and by 27 January a further 584 producers’ advance payments were issued. Further payments due on those 777 claims remaining will be issued as soon as possible.

Agriculture

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what the reason was for delays in issuing 2002 Suckler Cow Premium advance payments to crofters and farmers, scheduled to be issued in November 2002 but received by many producers in mid-January 2003, and what action is being taken to avoid similar delays in the future.

Ross Finnie: Advance payments under the Suckler Cow Premium Scheme (SCPS) are normally scheduled to begin   in November but not all payments can be made at that time. Sixty-five per cent of SCPS claimants do not submit their claim form until November or December, 33% do not submit until the final week of the application period. All claims are subject to a rigorous validation process to ensure that subsidy is only paid on animals which have met scheme eligibility requirements. This process now includes the cross checking of claimed animals against the Cattle Tracing System (operated by the British Cattle Movement Service) – this is a legal requirement which we must comply with – and, while these cross checks have added to the complexity of claim processing, advance payments have not been delayed unduly. Over 90% of claimed animals have successfully cleared the validation process and been paid. My department will continue to make every effort to minimise any delay in the issue of payments on eligible animals.

Animal Welfare

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the incidence of Johne’s disease has been in cattle in those years for which figures are available.

Ross Finnie: No figures are available for Johne’s disease, as it is not a notifiable animal disease.

  However, the Surveillance Group on Diseases and Infections of Animals has set up a working group and part of its remit will be to look into the prevalence of the disease in the national herd.

Animal Welfare

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to eradicate Johne’s disease in cattle.

Ross Finnie: The Surveillance Group on Diseases and Infections of Animals has set up a Surveillance Working Group to look into Johne's disease in the national herd. As part of their remit the group aims to determine:

  the prevalence of the disease in the national herd;

  the consequences of the disease in animal health and welfare, and

  the development of control measures.

Animal Welfare

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-25393 by Ross Finnie on 17 May 2002, what its position is on banning enriched battery cages and whether it has any plans to consult on any such ban in Scotland as the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has in England.

Ross Finnie: The use of enriched battery cages is permitted under the Welfare of Farmed Animal (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2002, which came into force on 4 July 2002. The regulations implement the requirements of Directive 99/74/EC on the Welfare of Laying Hens in full.

  The Executive has no plans to consult on any proposal to ban the use of such cages in advance of the Commission’s review of the directive in 2005.

Children in Care

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-32920 by Malcolm Chisholm on 14 January 2003, whether it has any plans to collate information on the percentage of children in private residential care homes that have been prescribed Ritalin and similar class drugs.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Executive has no plans to collate information on the percentage of children in private residential care homes that have been prescribed Ritalin and similar class drugs.

  The decision on whether or not to prescribe a drug for a patient is always a matter for the clinical judgement of the patient’s doctor, informed by advice and guidance about the drug.

  The Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care (the Care Commission) in regulating services against the legislative requirements and the relevant national care standards requires providers of care homes for children (independent and local authority), to keep accurate up-to-date records of all medicines for the use of service users. These records are kept on the premises from which the care service is provided.

Drug Misuse

Mr Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been arrested for possession of cocaine in the last five years.

Mr Jim Wallace: Our criminal statistics cover recorded crimes rather than persons arrested. Within those statistics, possession of cocaine cannot be separately identified from the number of all recorded crimes for possession of a drug.

Education

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many cultural co-ordinators are in place in schools.

Mike Watson: A total of 53 Cultural Co-ordinators are now in place. A further 37 will be in place within the next seven weeks, and funding for a further five is in place.

Education

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to encourage creativity in education.

Mike Watson: The Scottish Executive Education Department commissioned Learning Teaching Scotland to map opportunities for creativity across the curriculum. A guidance document was produced which encouraged a creative approach to learning and teaching through the use of examples of good practice drawn from schools across Scotland. This publication, Creativity in Education , was launched in November 2001 and is further supported by additional case study material through the Learning Teaching Scotland website.

  A Creativity Task Force within the Executive is currently considering appropriate performance measure or quality indicators to allow for the monitoring of the delivery of creativity within education.

  Concurrently, the Executive is funding a joint project by Learning and Teaching Scotland and the IDES Network (International Design Enterprise Series Network) to produce and disseminate robust and practical tools for the promotion and evaluation of creativity in formal education. This work will concentrate on providing exemplification aimed at the classroom; namely teachers, the practice of learning and teaching and assessment.

  Also, this project will aim to point up ways in which evaluation of creativity can assist managers within schools and local authorities across Scotland and identify any implications for the wider educational community, including teacher training, continuing professional development, course guidance and arrangements and assessment procedures.

  The Executive’s National Cultural Strategy landmark Cultural Co-ordinators in Schools programme, (as referred to in the answer given to question S1W-32856 today) is another element helping to maximise the potential of cultural activity and developing creativity in schools. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

General Practitioners

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider introducing physician assistants in support of the work of GPs and improved access to primary care services.

Malcolm Chisholm: There are no current plans to introduce physician assistants to support the work of GPs in NHS Scotland.

General Practitioners

Mr Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what average percentage of the costs of the employment of support staff is reimbursed to GPs in each NHS board area.

Mr Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what average percentage of the costs of computer equipment is reimbursed to GPs in each NHS board area.

Malcolm Chisholm: This is a matter for NHS boards and Primary Care Trusts. The information requested is not held centrally.

Justice

Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is taking to address homophobic hate crimes in light of the recent announcement by the Crown Prosecution Service about action it is taking to tackle this issue in England and Wales.

Mrs Elish Angiolini: Homophobic hate crimes are taken seriously and prosecuted vigorously by procurators fiscal. There is currently no systematic collection of data in relation to the occurrence of such crimes. The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is committed to examining, with our criminal justice partners, how best to allow such collection, both in relation to information contained in police reports to procurators fiscal and in information held about cases prosecuted in the courts.

  In addition, we are working as part of our diversity strategy to strengthen our contacts within the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities so as to obtain a better understanding of their concerns.

Justice

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider reviewing the practice of self-regulation in the legal profession.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Executive is at present considering recommendations made by the Justice 1 Committee in the report which it published on 27 November 2002 on its inquiry into the regulation of the legal profession. The committee recommended the continuation of self-regulation, subject to the strengthening of safeguards, the enhancement of the role of the Scottish Legal Services Ombudsman and an increase in lay involvement in the complaints handling process.

  The Executive will respond to the committee’s recommendations as soon as possible.

NHS Funding

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of NHS funding has been given to each NHS board area and what percentage of NHS activity has been carried out in each board area in each of the last three years.

Malcolm Chisholm: The percentage of NHS expenditure and activity for each board area for the last three years is shown in the following table:

  Percentage of NHS Expenditure and NHS Activity Per NHS Board Area

  

2001-02
2000-01
1999-2000  Board
Funding % Activity 
% Funding %
Activity % Funding 
% Activity % 
Argyll and Clyde 7.6
7.1 7.8
6.9 7.7
6.9  Ayrshire and 
Arran 6.5
7.4 6.5
7.1 6.5
7.1  Borders
1.9 2.0
2.0 1.8
2.0 1.8
 Dumfries and Galloway
2.8 2.5
2.8 2.8
2.9 2.8
 Fife 5.6
5.9 5.6
5.9 5.6
5.7  Forth Valley
4.9 4.8
5.0 4.5
4.9 4.3
 Greater Glasgow
21.3 23.1
21.2 23.3
21.4 23.0
 Grampian
9.5 9.5
9.6 9.6
9.7 9.7
 Highland
4.1 4.3
4.0 4.1
4.0 4.1
 Lanarkshire
9.5 9.2
9.0 9.1
9.0 9.7
 Lothian
15.6 15.1
15.4 15.7
15.5 15.7
 Tayside
8.8 8.0
9.1 8.3
9.0 8.3
 Orkney
0.5 0.3
0.5 0.2
0.5 0.2
 Shetland
0.6 0.3
0.6 0.3
0.5 0.3
 Western Isles
0.8 0.5
0.9 0.4
0.8 0.4
 Total 100
100 100
100 100
100 

  Notes:

  1. Trust reported expenditure has been used as a proxy for funding as this more appropriately relates to activity levels within NHS board areas. The funding percentages are based on the published Annual Accounts of individual NHS trusts and Island Health Boards as presented to Parliament.

  2. Activity percentages are based on the Scottish Key Indicators Package for Performance (SKIPPER), produced by the Information Services Division (ISD) of the Common Services Agency (CSA). Total activity = elective in-patients + non-elective in-patients + day cases.

NHS Waiting Times

Iain Smith (North-East Fife) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what the current average waiting times are for (a) an initial appointment in respect of chronic pain and (b) subsequent treatment.

Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally. Data on out-patient waiting times is collected centrally at specialty level only and there is no recognised specialty of chronic pain.

National Health Service

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it supports the plans of Her Majesty’s Government for a university of the National Health Service.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Executive is fully committed to the education and training of all health professionals and recognises the important and vital role played by the Scottish Universities and NHS Education for Scotland in supporting education.

  The Scottish Executive is currently undertaking a Scottish consultation on the government’s intention to establish the NHS University before welcoming the initiative. When the results of the consultation have been fully considered the Scottish Executive will be able to respond appropriately to the plans.

National Lottery Funding

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much national lottery funding has been awarded per head of population in (a) Scotland and the (b) Glasgow, (c) Aberdeen, (d) Edinburgh, (e) East Renfrewshire and (f) East Dunbartonshire local authority areas in each year since 1993, broken down by theme.

Dr Elaine Murray: This is a matter for the lottery distributing bodies. The information requested is not held centrally.

Planning

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what weight it gives to cumulative effects of multiple proposals across local authority boundaries in consideration of planning applications for wind farms.

Des McNulty: It is for the decision-maker to decide how much weight should be attached to each material consideration in the context of individual proposals. When considering cumulative effect, account will need to be taken of the scale and location of other wind farms, regardless of where they are situated.

Prison Service

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-33257 by Mr Andy Kerr on 17 January 2003, whether HM Prison Kilmarnock is not an asset held by it or any body controlled by it and on whose balance sheet the prison is recorded as an asset.

Mr Andy Kerr: The contract to design, construct, manage, and finance a prison at Kilmarnock was awarded by the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) under the Private Finance Initiative. The 25-year contract period commenced in March 1999 and so its accounting treatment was assessed using Technical Note 1 (Revised) How to account for PFI Transactions .

  At the end of the contract period the prison building comes into the ownership of the SPS. In the meantime, the SPS accounts for its commitments under the contract and for its reversionary interest in the property. Since the SPS is an Executive Agency of the Scottish Executive, the same accounting treatment applies in the consolidated accounts of the Scottish Executive (which report the performance, assets and liabilities of all bodies within the Scottish Executive accounting boundary). The external auditor, Audit Scotland, accepts this view.

  The Scottish Executive is aware that the private sector contractor, supported by their external auditor, has also reached a view that the prison does not constitute a fixed asset in its balance sheet.

  All parties have been applying, in good faith, the relevant guidance.

  The Scottish Executive is aware of the apparent anomaly and has raised the issue with the Financial Reporting Advisory Board, which is now conducting a review.

Public Bodies

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to make appointments to the remaining two places on Bòrd Gàidhlig na h-Alba; if so, when the appointments will be made, and whether those that originally applied will be considered.

Mike Watson: There are no immediate plans to fill these two places. The main priority at present is for the current members of Bòrd Gàidhlig na h-Alba to develop a good working relationship. The appointment of an additional two bòrd members is an option for the future. If this option is pursued the same criteria will be applied and the same procedure will be followed. Those who originally applied can be considered if they so wish.

Scottish Arts Council

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much the Scottish Arts Council awarded to (a) Scotland and the (b) Glasgow, (c) Aberdeen, (d) Edinburgh, (e) East Renfrewshire and (f) East Dunbartonshire local authority areas per head of population in each year since 1996.

Dr Elaine Murray: This is a matter for the Scottish Arts Council. The information requested is not held centrally.

Scottish Arts Council

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the full costs were of printing, publishing and distributing the annual report of the Scottish Arts Council in each year since 1998.

Dr Elaine Murray: This is a matter for the Scottish Arts Council. The information requested is not held centrally.

Scottish Executive Publications

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the costs were of printing, publishing and distributing Scotland’s Budget Documents 2003-04, Budget (Scotland) (No.4) Bill for the year ending 31 March 2004 .

Mr Andy Kerr: The costs of publishing, printing and the distribution of Scotland’s Budget Documents 2003-04 are set out as follows:

   
Document  Publishing
Printing Distribution
 Scotland’s Budget Documents 
2003-04 £1,494.20*
£2,764.48 £200.00**


  Note:

  *Includes costs for web conversion.

  **Estimate of costs of distribution.

Scottish Water

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, with regard to the re-organisation of Scottish Water and its procurement arrangements, whether the infrastructure will be in place to meet European legislative deadlines in relation to waste water.

Ross Finnie: In the period until March 2006, Scottish Water will be investing some £1.8 billion towards modernising its infrastructure. About half of this amount will be invested in waste water treatment facilities. Responsibility for ensuring that infrastructure is in place to meet legislative deadlines lies with Scottish Water.

Shipbuilding

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what recent discussions it has had with Her Majesty’s Government regarding securing an equitable share of the warship building contracts for the three shipyards on the River Clyde.

Iain Gray: The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the UK Government on a wide range of issues, including shipbuilding. However, I understand that the MOD is due to announce its decision on the preferred prime contractor shortly. I understand that, whichever company is successful, a substantial proportion of the work will come to Scotland and to the Clyde in particular.

Special Educational Needs

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of any concerns of parents of children with special educational needs that do not wish their children to be placed in mainstream schooling and what action it is taking to address such concerns.

Cathy Jamieson: The decision on which school a child should attend is a matter for agreement between an education authority and parents. Parents have a right to make a placing request for a school of their choice, and to appeal against the decision should this be refused. The new duty on an education authority to provide education in mainstream schools comes into effect in August 2003. However, children can still be placed in special schools where mainstream education is unable to meet their needs. The Scottish Executive has issued guidance on mainstreaming to education authorities which includes the importance of taking account of parents’ views.

Water Supply

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what studies it has undertaken to ascertain the number of households that receive their public water supply through lead piping.

Ross Finnie: In order to determine the extent of the work required to meet the new standard for lead set in the EC Drinking Water Directive by the target date of December 2003, Scottish Water undertook a survey to determine the extent of the lead problem across Scotland. The results of the lead survey will be used to determine where water treatment measures are required to reduce the tendency for the water to dissolve lead from lead pipes.

  The survey was not designed to ascertain the number of households with lead plumbing but to identify water supply areas within which there was likely to be a significant number of properties with lead plumbing. By December 2003, around 25% of water supplies, covering about 75% of the population, will be treated to minimise the uptake of lead from lead pipes.

Wildlife

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-32476 by Allan Wilson on 24 December 2002, whether any measures that will be introduced as a result of the public consultation, launched on 15 January 2003 by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), on the tightening up of the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulations 1997 and that do not apply in Scotland could be incorporated in any future nature conservation bill.

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-32476 by Allan Wilson on 24 December 2002, whether it will participate in public consultation, launched on 15 January 2003 by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), on ways to tighten the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulations 1997 and whether any changes to the regulations that result from the consultation process will apply to Scotland without the need for legislation.

Allan Wilson: The Scottish Executive will be contributing fully to the DEFRA Review of the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulations 1997. Given that the consultation on the review does not end until 4 April, it is premature to speculate what changes will be required to the regulations or the means by which they will be made.

Youth Crime

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in respect of its 10-point action plan on youth crime with particular regard to spreading best practice, a nationwide application of a system of warnings, re-configuring secure accommodation for girl-only accommodation, establishing national standards to operate between the local authority criminal justice system and children’s hearings and increasing the speed of referral to the courts in the light of its report and statement on the recommendations of its Youth Crime Review, the Report of the Advisory Group on Youth Crime, Scotland’s Action Programme to Reduce Youth Crime 2002 and the Audit Scotland’s report, Dealing with Offending and Young People .

Cathy Jamieson: We have made considerable progress towards the implementation of the Action Plan. The following table sets out the latest position:

   
Ten-Point Action Plan Action
 1. A pilot of Fast-track Children’s 
Hearings for persistent offenders under 16 An 
operational framework for the pilot has been agreed with all involved. National 
and local training is now under way for professional staff, panel members and 
other relevant groups. Expect first referrals to fast track hearings soon.
 2. A Youth Courts feasibility project for 
persistent offenders aged 16 and 17, with flexibility to deal with 15-year-olds.
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-33423 today. All answers 
to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, 
the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.. 
  3. Reviewing the scope for using 
Restriction of Liberty Orders, Anti-Social Behaviour Orders and Community Service 
Orders for persistent offenders Improving 
the effectiveness of these disposals for this age group is under cross-departmental 
consideration. Expect to publish proposals shortly.  
4. A Safer Scotland police campaign on high visibility policing, covering Youth 
Disorder, to increase visibility and provide community re-assurance.
The Safer Scotland campaign ran from October to December. Initial feedback 
from the police involved is that the campaign was a success and that it met its 
main objectives.  5. Spread best 
practice, and establish firm standards, for community-based projects funded through 
the Action Programme, Better Neighbourhood Services Fund programmes and Making 
Communities Safer programmes. A small number 
of pilot projects are being funded as a means of testing out different approaches 
to tackling youth crime and we will share best practice arising from these. The 
process of commissioning research which will evaluate the experience of community 
safety projects and community-based projects focusing on youth crime is also under 
way.  6. Consideration of a Scotland-wide 
application of a system of cautions/warnings, and a detailed exploration of restorative 
cautions approach, perhaps through piloting. 
I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-33085 on 21 January 
2003.   7. Reconfiguring the secure 
accommodation available nationally to provide groups of girl-only accommodation, 
further consideration of additional places and improving the range and provision 
of programmes in secure units The Executive’s 
intention to increase the number of places by around 25 places was announced on 
17 September. Details are on the Scottish Executive website at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/pages/news/2002/09/Seed102.aspx. 
For more recent developments, I refer the member to the answer given to 
question S1W-32801 on 20 December 2002. 
8. A set of national standards to operate between local authorities, the criminal 
justice system and Children’s Hearings, covering reporting, timescales and 
follow up I refer the member to the answer 
given to question S1W-33098 on 22 January 2003. 
9. Promote parental responsibility, through voluntary measures and in the longer-term 
to consider the feasibility of introducing further statutory obligations on parents
We announced funding on 8 January for a range of voluntary services and programmes 
to support parents of young offenders. Details are available on the Scottish Executive 
website at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/pages/news/2003/01/SEed170a.aspx
  10. Measures to increase the speed 
of referral to the courts, will be considered, and introduction of specific targets 
discussed with the Judiciary. SCS have invited 
key partners onto a working group to take this work forward. The group will build 
on the work of the youth court feasibility project.

Youth Crime

Mr Michael McMahon (Hamilton North and Bellshill) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when the report of the Youth Court Feasibility Group, announced as part of its ten-point youth crime action plan in June 2002, will be available.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Report of the Youth Court Feasibility Group is being published today and is available on the Scottish Executive website and in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 26132). The Executive accepts the report’s conclusion and is proceeding with implementation in Hamilton Sheriff Court of the Youth Court model proposed in the report.